By Golly, I'm Back!

 It's been a while.

Like more than two weeks which is not my style.

But now I am back after more activities than a gal can relate.  More pictures too.

We went to Florida for a week and of course we saw this bundle of joy more than once. 

My goodness what a sweetheart and Bill and Fallon cannot keep from thinking it must be a dream, they are so in love with him. Can you blame them?

But let's back up a bit because there is much to be said. We served at Soul Table on the 3rd of July and here is Dottie in the middle, D'Anna and yours truly decked out for the holiday. 

I nearly forgot that I have not told you about the 4th! After playing pickleball we walked over to the park just in time for the peanut drop! Yes, you read that correctly. And what pray tell is a peanut drop you ask?

I don't know how many they drop, but unshelled peanuts fall from the back of the plane, scattering all over the field, and folks go after them, looking for colored ones that are worth money, ranging from $1-5.

Later on we watched the fireworks display from our neighbor Sandy's porch and while good, and better than from our back porch, next year we are just going to walk the few blocks to the park because for a small town, it is a very impressive display.

Here's something funny. So remember how I went mushroom foraging, more specifically for chanterelles in the forest, and it took like two hours to get to the spot? Arriving at Cobby and Diane's house for a cookout, look what was in their front yard! Diane had already picked a bunch of them.

Meet Tank their beloved cat.

28 hours later, I continue....(life got in the way of my computer time)

Monday morning, nearly two weeks ago, we left the house around 8AM, heading south with our first stop the Costco in Woodstock to pick up our new glasses. Unfortunately for me, I had them tighten mine a little too much and it has taken this long for them to finally be comfortable. 

But I digress...

Surprisingly, the drive through Atlanta was not too awful except for this little bit in the outskirts

By that time it was about 11 in the morning, so what the hold up was, is not something I am prepared to write about except to say that D'Anna says it always backs up in this area and  seeing as how she was raised in Atlanta, she should know.

We made excellent time, arriving in Valdosta, our normal stopping place, about 3:30 in the afternoon. The parking lot at the Drury Inn was nearly empty, so little Missy here suggested we go into downtown to see what we could see rather than sit in the hotel room. Mr. Wonderful agreed. There were a lot of tell-tale signs of a city working hard to revitalize their downtown which was filled with many wonderful buildings.

Lots of interesting murals to admire.

We went into several cute shops where people were enjoying themselves.

Another striking mural.

And who does not like an alleyway filled with colorful umbrellas?

All was good until it wasn't. Back to the hotel that Bruce had very much been looking forward to, he popped in to secure a room and they were ALL sold out! Apparently the word is getting out that it is such a good deal. So, we headed out of town and Bruce drove the four more hours to Orlando, arriving just before dark and in time to stop at Publix for a few supplies. Woo hoo! Passing the time I continued reading aloud all sorts of things to Bruce, eventually coming across a website about world population. Wow, some real surprises there. While we knew that India and China are neck and neck as far as people go, we were both surprised at how many people live in Africa! Perhaps I have mentioned before how Bruce is always game for guessing things, and is usually pretty darn accurate, but this time some of the African countries most definitely took him by surprise.

Much to our delight no real disasters awaited us, that is if you don't count two small leaks in the sunroom awning. 

The corner that you see was leaking, but we were able to secure a visit from the ever-busy Herbert who caulked it and we should now be in good shape. 

Tuesday morning first thing I took an open dental appointment for a cleaning, stopping at the carwash in the complex to rid the MINI Cooper of a few months worth of dirt.

I am including a photo because I suspect some folks up here are really doubting that I actually do drive, if only occasionally!

As I may have reported, we are in the midst of a very expensive assessment to pay for new roofs throughout the community. It was good to see how things are progressing.

One of the other things we hoped to accomplish was to empty our storage unit, the same one we downsized to about a year ago. Since that time, although this space was nearly half the size of the previous one, the rates kept increasing, seemingly on a whim. SO, after seven years, we did it! Or, more accurately Bruce did with some cheerleading on my part. Another big surprise was that while hot, it never was nearly as hot as it was two months ago. Thank God for that!

Our visits to see Christian still revolve around feedings and nap time, but when we were able to see the family it was pure gold. 

Another thing I did on our drive down was contact friends to set up meal dates which worked out very nicely. Tuesday night just Bruce and I popped into a newish place called Moderne, and while I thought the food was uneven, the look was spectacular.

Their menu is meant to be an Asian-fusion small plates kind of place with that fusion being Japanese-Puerto Rican, if you can imagine. Fallon told me later it is supposed to be all about the cocktails. Bruce sampled one for $14 and not only was it pretty, it was delicious according to him. I have no idea what was meant by that clip on art.

Before leaving Murphy we arranged to have both John and D'Anna help with our plants and I am so pleased to report that these back porch plants, corralled for easy watering, took our absence in stride. 

After much back and forth we met Joe and Cynthia at F&D Italian Kitchen and it was super good; the same cannot be said of the picture that I took of them. No clue what happened!

I spent some time exploring the front gardens at the complex and they did not disappoint.

It does not get any more Florida than banana trees and bougainvillea.

I have seen very few butterflies this summer in Murphy, so I was pleased that I was able to see a Monarch butterfly enjoying some milkweed. 

These caterpillars are very cool to see in person while at the same time the gardeners wish desperately not to see them in person!

We also went swimming on a few days which was just delightful. If there is anything I miss about our place in Orlando, it is the pool.

And the lakes, and the surrounding flora and fauna.

And of course our friends and family. Look at this little face!

But then I think of the heat that I just cannot tolerate anymore. Although this visit was bearable, there are months and months ahead that are not. We will continue staying in touch via videos and Facetime like we have with Matthew these many years. As you may recall, I began this blog about a month or so before he left to work in London and both of us are still at it! My word, I just looked at the statistics and it seems as if I have gone over one million views recently. And to think it only took 18 years!😊

Our sermon today was about communication and how important it is to stay in touch with our loved ones, a subject near and dear to my heart. Blogging was not mentioned, although it might have been. I sincerely value and appreciate anyone who spends time reading Camera Crazy, a blog I began in an entirely different part of our lives. I was a college student, Jonathan was still at home, Bruce traveled most every week for days at a time,  and our sons were not married. And here we are now. Gosh, it's a wonderful life.

your friend,

Gail

p.s. More about the Orlando time and the crazy amount of activities since our return to our sweet little, never imagined in our wildest dreams, house on Campbell Street where cucumbers are growing!

Friends and Foraging

 Holy cow, I just looked back at my last post and saw how long it was! Thanks for those who stuck with it and here's the link for those who never got there in the first place. Do you imagine I can be more succinct with this post? Fat chance!

A party we were invited to last week was held outdoors at Harry and Julie's home and when I think back, it was like a movie set, or what you might imagine a party in the mountains would be like. Lights strung from tree to tree with flowers from their gardens gracing the tables as centerpieces. 

People found places to sit under the shade of the ancient trees.

In the meadow below was a very large garden in full summer swing with the corn standing tall, the tomato vines on their trellises, as well as a variety of other home grown goodness. 

Perhaps you will remember when Bruce and John worked on a ramp for Nancy, Julie's mom, when the days were very cold and snow was on the ground. A reminder of that time is in this post, as are loads of snow pictures. Julie's father, Eddie was the guest of honor celebrating a late 80's birthday with one of his favorite dishes, hot dogs, West Virginia style. He's pictured below in a neat white t-shirt.

Jamie, Julie's twin sister is helping Nancy. It was a joyous occasion made even more special in the beautiful setting. Someone pointed out a deer in the pasture below so I, of course, had to go investigate. I was quite a ways away to begin with and here's what I saw.

Slowly moving forward, I kept taking more photos until my zoom revealed what I could not see with my own eyes, something I will address momentarily. Anyway, a nursing fawn is a first for me.Wow, what a sight!! Speaking of night lights, have I told you that we are seeing fireflies? Not a lot, no nothing like what we saw in Brevard, but enough to keep me happy.

As to my eyesight comment. My new glasses from WalMart were a failure ,so last Wednesday we made the trip to the nearest Costco in an Atlanta suburb. To say that we were frustrated with the policy of no- guarantee on the glasses unless you buy a warranty, something we have never done before, or needed for that matter. The anti-glare coating on the inside was a mottled mess, rendering them almost useless. Thus I am wearing my old glasses for now. The moral of the story is don't buy glasses at WM! I will say it was ironic when I mentioned this to the woman who was assisting me at Costco that she said that is where she used to work. Apparently this no-guarantee business is relatively new. 

Back to more pleasant subjects!

Like my solitary purple hydrangea. Yup, on a big bush there is but one of these beauties compared to the 50 or more blooms on the blue one.

They are nearly spent, although there are still tons of blooms on the plant, they just are not in their prime. What is in prime season are hostas,

and beautiful Rose of Sharon as seen through my kitchen window.

There are two trees and one bush in our yard, all filled with beautiful blooms that are great hummingbird attracters. That said, hummingbird sightings have been few and far between for this enthusiast. See if you can spot one below. 

I was sitting on the front porch in the early morning when I saw them way across the yard flitting from bloom to bloom so rapidly that it is hard to get a shot. At the same time, I kept seeing some Mourning Doves going into the Japanese Maple tree. Hmmmm....must be a nest in there.

Bill and Roxanne surprised us with a quick visit, meeting us at the courts, followed by a short time at our home before we went out to lunch. They were on their way to Fontana Village for a BMW road rally.

Well, Roxanne got a phone call and took it on the front porch, roaming to and fro while talking to their son. When she joined us she said that there were two cute birds that kept hopping around, which sounded fun, but it happens from time to time. However, the same day that I saw the dove action, I saw some small birds heading in and out of a large hanging fern. How large you wonder?

While it may not look like it, that beauty is 36" across and I know this how? When I took it down from the hanger I thought how giant it was, so I measured it. This photo is by no means good, but it does show you what a Song Sparrow looks like. Now both you and Roxanne know!

The conundrum is how to water the fern now

Bruce built this contraption to get my cucumbers off of the ground.

They are tiny now, but won't be long, or so says Gail who knows nothing about growing cucumbers!

Foraging, let's get to foraging for mushrooms! Indeed, when Robin called with the invitation to go mushroom foraging with a man she knows I was intrigued. When she said we were to leave at 7AM Saturday morning I hesitated briefly, but ultimately thought, why not? 

Robin is also a transplant, but unlike us, she and Mike moved here four years ago from a city just outside of New Orleans. In other words, she is now a pro behind the wheel and she showed it, even when it was nearly too foggy to see. Actually we were in the clouds!

Seated in the back seat behind Richard, our mushroom guru, I took photos as we moved because I had never before been in this part of the state but miles from the Tennessee border. 

On closer inspection not only do they have eggs but they also cut hair. The countryside was beautiful with farms here and there,

a cemetery,

and old tiny churches.

In other words, we were not in tourist North Carolina, but deep in the mountains where few outside folks venture. Joe Brown Highway winds it's way to Tennessee. For the curious there is a map included in this link. 

All the while Richard told us tales of his 20+ years in Murphy, having moved to the mountains from the coast of North Carolina. Eventually, as we were driving along Shuler Creek, he had Robin pull off to the side of the road and said, let's look in here.

Chanterelles were the prize and there were a bounty of them way into the forest. Robin is standing beside a patch on the ground.

Their bright pumpkin orange color is hard to miss in a sea of green. 

As is common I walked with mild trepidation but these wonderful ladies that I am meeting are so good and hang onto me when I am leery! Not that it was very steep this time, but it was wet because rain has become our everyday companion. It proved to be an excellent day for foraging and this basket was but one of our collection.

Speaking of rain, that same night David was hosting a birthday party for Randy that was to begin at their newly broken ground house site. Afraid of rain, we met at their A-frame. Randy is the one standing head and shoulders over the rest of us!

Probably twenty or so minutes after taking this photo, the crowd moved indoors due to imminent rain which delivered in spades. A bonus gift was the loss of power! Winding roads and waning light sent us home via Linda who graciously drove us. I have been such the passenger lately! What a gift.

Days from now our dear son Matthew will be celebrating another birthday far from his birthplace. He was born in Orlando on July 5.1976, a bicentennial baby with a certificate to prove it. If all goes according to plan, we will see him at Christmas in Florida. Something about living with seasons just ignites the urge to celebrate them with wreaths. Now that my friends, is not a sentence you have ever read in Camera Crazy before and probably never have, period. Yet, it is true. I pulled out the old fabric scrap idea for a 4th of July wreath adorned with one of the Christmas bows Dottie made. 

Decades have passed since last I did this sort of thing, but it was still a tiny memory fueled by Youtube so now, once again, I know how to stick fabric into a straw wreath from the thrift store!

I did my best, but once again, I may have carried on for too long. Please do forgive me, will you?

your friend,

Gail